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Afro/"nay United States Patent 3,327,332 UPHOLSTERY INSULATOR PAD William F. Richardson and John G. Platt, Carthage, Mo

assignors to Flex-U-Lators, Inc., Carthage, Mo a corporation of Missouri Filed Apr. 15, 1966, er. No. 542,940 7 Claims. (Cl. 354) This invention relates to new and useful improvements in upholstery accessories, and has particular reference to that class of upholstery accessory commonly known as an insulator pa An insulator pad consists of a spring wire or wirereinforced fabric sheet adapted to be inserted between the spring deck of furniture or automotive seat structures and the padding layers applied over said spring deck, and primarily has the function of providing adequate support for said padding to prevent it from working down into the spaces between and within the spring units making up the spring deck, said spring units often being spaced widely apart and therefore offering only intermittent or interrupted support for the padding layers. A type of insulator pad in extremely wide and popular usage consists of a series of closely spaced parallel spring wires extending between and secured at their ends to relatively pliable side strands.

A difficulty of application has arisen in connection with this type of pad. This difficulty arises from the fact that while the pad is quite adequately strong and resilient in flexure when flexed about axes at right angles to the wires, it is almost without strength or resistance to flexure when bent about axes parallel to the wires, and from the extremely wide usage of spring decks formed of zig-zag spring units. Such spring decks consist of a series of heavy generally parallel, sepentine wires extending across and secured at their ends to the seat frame, and being arched upwardly between their end connections. For various reasons, particularly to reduce the span of the arched serpentine wires, it is necessary that said serpentine wires be installed to bridge the depth of the seat frame, that is, from the forward to the rearward edges thereof. The serpentine wires are widely spaced apart, and hence provide entirely inadequate support for padding layers applied thereover.

Therefore, when using an insulator pad as described above over such a serpentine spring deck, it has heretofore been necessary to apply the pad so that the parallel spring wires of the pad extend at right angles to the general direction of the serpentine units, in order that said parallel wires will lie across and bridge the spaces between the serpentine units. The pad Wires are thus supported at intervals by the serpentine wires, and by their resilience provide support for the padding in the spaces between the serpentine wires. If the pad wires extended parallel to the serpentine units, those wires disposed over the spaces between the serpentine units would be substantially without support, and therefore could not support the padding adequately.

This necessity that the pad wires extend transversely to the serpentine units created a major supply problem for manufacturers. The insulator pad is economically produced on automatic machinery in continuous lengths, measured at right angles to the wires and can convenently be cut to any length necessary for each job simply by severing the side strands. However, once the pad has been manufactured, the width thereof, measured between the side strands, is fixed and cannot be adjusted. When the pad is installed as has heretofore been necessary, the side strands of the pad lie at the sides of the seat, and the width of the pad must conform to the width of the seat. The widths of upholstered seating varies widely, from a single seat width to more than one hundred inches in some 3,327,332 Patented June 27, 1967 ice wide couches. It was therefore necessary for the manufacturer to produce, and for the user to stock, insulator pads in an extremely large variety of widths, thereby causing the high expense and warehouse storage problems of a large inventory. If the pad wires could be laid parallel to the serpentine spring deck units, so that the pad width corresponded to the depth of the seat, then the necessity of a wide variety of pad widths would be alleviated, since upholstered seating is produced in only a relatively small number of difierent depths. The pad could then be cut to the desired length, corresponding to the width of the seat from a continuous length, regardless of the width of the seat, simply by severing the pad parallel to the wires thereof. The economical advantages of this possibility to the industry are quite substantial.

The principal object of the present invention is, therefore, the provision of an upholstery insulating pad which, without sacrificing the advantages of economy or efiiciency of the pad described above, nevertheless with only minor additions may be applied so that the parallel wires thereof extend parallel to the units of the spring deck. Generally, this object is accomplished by the addition to the pad of resilient reinforcing spring wires extending transversely to said parallel wires and secured thereto, said reinforcing wires serving to bridge the spaces between the spring :deck units and to furnish support for the parallel wires in said spaces, which otherwise would be substantially without support.

Another object is the provision of an insulator pad of the character described wherein said reinforcing wires are so configurated and so mounted as to be placed under torsional strain as well as bending strain by flexure of the pad in usage, thereby increasing the resistance of said wires to fiexure and reducing the number of reinforcing wires required.

A further object is the provision of an insulator pad of the character described having novel means attaching said reinforcing wires to said parallel pad wires whereby contact between said wires is prevented. This eliminates the grinding, grating or rubbing noises which might otherwise occur as a result of relative movement of said Wires in usage.

A still further object is the provision of an insulator pad of the character described having additional means still further improving the padding support function thereof.

Other objects are simplicity and economy of construc- 7 tion, efficiency and dependability of operation, and adaptability for low-cost production on automatic machinery.

With these objects in view, as well as other objects which will appear in the course of the specification, reference will be had to the accompanying drawing, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a spring deck for upholstered furniture, showing an insulator pad embodying the present invention applied operatively thereto,

FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of the insulator pad only, taken on line IIII of FIG. 1,

FIG. 3 is a still further enlarged, inverted fragmentary plan view of the insulator pad, showing one of the reinforcing wires and the means for attaching it to the parallel pad wires,

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on line IVIV of FIG. 3, following the configuration of the reinforcing Wire,

FIG. 5 is a plan view of an insulator pad showing a slightly modified construction,

FIG. 6 is an enlarged, fragmentary plan view of the pad shown in FIG. 5, showing one of the reinforcing wires and the means for securing it to the parallel pad wires, and

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on line 3 VII-VII of FIG. 6, following the configuration of the reinforcing wire.

Like reference numerals apply to similar parts throughout the several views, and the numeral 2 applies to a frame for an upholstered seat, said frame being here illustrated as an open rectangle formed of heavy wire or rod stock. Said frame may be regarded as substantially rigidly mounted, as part of the overall frame of an upholstered chair, couch or the like. A spring deck is formed by a series of spring units 4 each consisting of a length of heavy spring wire formed in a sinuous or serpentine configuration and extending across frame 2, and secured at its ends to said frame by any suitable means such as by clips 6. Said spring units are usually bowed or arched upwardly intermediate their ends, and spaced rather widely apart as shown. It will be understood that the vertical dimension of frame 2, as viewed in FIG. 1, constitutes the depth or front-to-rear dimension of the seat, and that the horizontal dimension of the frame corresponds to the width of the seat.

The insulator pad forming the subject matter of the present invention, in the form thereof shown in FIGS. 1-4, is indicated generally by the numeral 8,and includes a pair of parallel side strands which are spaced apart a distance generally equal to the depth of seat frame 2, and which may constitute cords of twisted paper or other soft, pliable material. Extending between said side strands are a series of parallel, closely spaced apart cross strands 12, each comprising a spring steel wire. A spacing between adjacent wires of about one inch has been found to provide good support for padding layers, not shown, disposed above the insulator pad. The opposite ends of each wire 12 are secured tightly to the side strands 10, as by being wrapped or twisted tightly about said side strands, as shown at 14. This causes the wires to indent the paper side strands, whereby to prevent slippage of the wires along said side strands, and to maintain uni form spacing between the wires. The paper cords forming the side strands could, if desired be provided with spring wire cores for added strength, but even then the paper or other soft material is utilized to provide good purchase of the cross wires 12 thereon. One or more (one as shown) strands 16 may be provided intermediate and parallel to side strand-s 10. Such intermediate strands may also be formed of twisted paper or the like, and are pierced by cross wires 12, whereby to preserve proper spacing between said cross wires.

The insulator pad thus far described is standard, being commonly produced in continuous lengths by automatic machinery in which side strands 10 and intermediate strand 16 are fed concurrently and longitudinally past a work station at which a wire 12 is inserted transversely to the side strands from a continuous roll, piercing intermediate strand 16. The wire is then cut to proper length, its ends wrapped about the side strands, and the pad then advanced longitudinally to position it for receiving the next cross wire. The insulator pad is installed by laying it over the spring deck as shown in FIG. 1. Side strands 10 may be secured to frame 2 at intervals as by clips 18. However, if the pad as thus far described were installed as shown in FIG. 1, with cross wires 12 parallel to the general extent of serpentine spring deck units 4, it will be obvious that the wires 12 which overlie the spaces between units 4 would be very inadequately supported, and would support layers of padding placed thereover very poorly indeed. This, of course, is the reason it has heretofore been necessary, when using this type of insulator pad over a spring deck of the type shown, to apply the pad with cross wires 12 extending at right angles to the general extent of serpentine units 4, so that said serpentine wires would support all of the cross wires.

To overcome this difliculty, so that the pad may be applied with cross wires 12 parallel to spring deck units 4, with the advantages discussed above, the pad as thus far described is modified by the addition thereto of a plural- 4 ity (two as shown) or reinforcing wires 20 generally parallel to and uniformly spaced between side strands 10. Said reinforcing wires are not straight, but of angular zig-zag configuration, as best shown in FIG. 3. The wires 20 extend beneath cross wires 12, and for reasons which will presently appear, it is preferred that the successive angles of each wire 20 resulting from its zig-zag configuration, be disposed directly beneath successive cross wires 12. Each wire 20 is affixed to cross wires 12 by an upper tape 22 and a lower tape 24, said tapes being disposed in coinciding relationship respectively above and below wires 20 and 12, and extending the full length of the pad at right angles to wires 12. The tapes are formed preferably of a textile fabric for toughness, but could also be of any suitable pliable, substantially non-elastic material, such as paper or a pliable plastic film. Each cross wire 12 is stitched through upper tape 22 as at 26, in a single stitch, so that the longitudinal edge portions of said tape lie above said wire, while the central portion of the tape underlies said wire. The width of a central portion of the tape underlying wire 12 is greater than the horizontal transverse width of the zig-zag configuration of wire 20, and therefore is always disposed between wires 12 and 20 to prevent direct contact therebetween. The contiguous faces of tapes 22 and 24 are firmly bonded together in the spaces between Wires 12, and at both sides of wire 20,- by a flexible adhesive indicated at 28 in FIG. 3.

The primary function of reinforcing wires 20 is of course to form bridges across the spaces between the ser-.

pentine deck spring units 4, in order to provide support for the parallel cross wires 12 which overlie these spaces, whereby said wires 12 may perform more efificiently their function of supporting layers of padding material applied thereover'. It is preferred that reinforcing wires 20 underlie the cross wires in order that the former may more efliciently support the latter. It would. of course. be possible to position the reinforcing wires over the cross wires, although in that case the cross wires would be suspended from the cross wires by means of thetapes. It is not necessary that wires 20 be closely spaced to provide additional padding support, although they, and their securing tapes 22 and 24, do provide additional padding support in some degree. However, cross wires 12 will perform this function quite efficiently, if they are themselves adequately supported. The zig-zag configuration of wires 20 functions in a novel manner to increase their resistance to flexure transversely to the plane of the pad, which is the fiexure occurring in normal usage, and hence permits the use of fewer reinforcing wires in a pad of a given width. It will be seen that as the pad is flexed about any axis parallel to wires 12, reinforcing wires 20 are not only placed in a bending flexure, but also must be tor- :sionally twisted. This twisting occurs as a result of the oblique angularity of each straight reach of wire 20 between successive cross wires 12, it being apparent that any flexure of a wire about an axis oblique thereto will cause torsional strain thereof so long as its ends are secured against rotation about its axis. In the present structure the end support for each reach of the reinforcing wire is supplied by its connection to the next successive reach thereof, which is also inclined obliquely, but oppositely, to cross wires 12. Due to this opposite inclination, successive reaches of the reinforcing wire are twisted in alternately opposite directions, and the resulting opposite torque of each reach as related to the torque of the adjacent reaches serves as a back-up or anchor for the torsional strain of each reach. The resilient resistance of the wire to torsional strain, particularly when forced to occur in a very short (slightly more than one inch as shown) length of the wire, is quite substantial. This torsional resistance, combined with the straight bending flexure which occurs when the pad is flexed, renders the pad quite resistant to fiexure about axes parallel to wires 12, and thus permits the use of fewer, more widely spaced apart reinforcing wires than would be necessary if said reinforcing wires were straight.

i If the torsional action described above is to be maintained, it will be obvious that the plane of each reinforcing wire 20, as determined by the zig-zag convolutions thereof, must be maintained rather accurately in the plane established by wires 12, or more specifically, parallel to and directly adjacent said latter plane. If the plane of the convolutions of wire 20 were allowed to move, by rotation of wire 20 about its general longitudinal axis, to a right-angled relation to the plane of wires 12, the torsional effect would be completely lost. Wire 20 is maintained in the plane of wires 12 by the tapes 22 and 24, which in turn derive their support against torsion from wires 12. Since the angular bends between successive reaches of wire 20 are the portions of said wire which tend most strongly to leave the plane of wires 12, and t the greatest extent, if wire 20 should turn about its general longitudinal axis, it is desirable that these bends of wire 20 be disposed directly above wires 12, as shown, at which point they derive the strongest positioning effect from tapes 22 and 24 due to the direct proximity of wires 12. The inclusion of each wire 20 between the tapes, which themselves are pliable but not longitudinally stretchable to any appreciable degree, also tends to pre vent longitudinal lengthening of wire 120 as a result of tension thereon, which lengthening could otherwise occur by partial straightening the angled bends therein. The zig-zag configuration of wire 20 also increases the efficiency with which it is held between the tapes and prevented thereby from shifting longitudinally. Good bonds to a slender wire are very difficult to form by means of glue or the like, especially if the resulting structure is to be constantly and repeatedly flexed in usage. If wire 29 were straight, such repetitious flexure of the pad would soon break the wire free of the adhesive, and leave the wire free to shift longitudinally out of position. With wire 20 in zig-zag form, on the other hand, it will remain firmly anchored betwen the tapes even if it is not bonded to the tapes at all, or should any such bond be broken by repeated flexure.

The stitching of each wire 12 through upper tape 22, as at 26, provides that both tapes, for a portion of the width of the tape, are disposed at the same side of Wire 12, and wire 20 passes between these portions. This provides that there is always a tape between wire 20 and each wire 12, to prevent direct contact therebetween. This prevents the grinding, grating, rubbing or squeaking noises which might otherwise occur as a result of relative movement of the wires as the pad is flexed in normal usage, if said wires were in direct contact with each other. Such noises are of course highly objectionable in upholstered furniture. In this connection, it will be noted that, while not here shown, a sheet of cloth or the like is often interposed between the entire pad and the spring deck, in order to prevent noises resulting from the rubbing of wires 12 on deck spring units 4.

Finally, it will be seen that the insulator pad is well adapted for economical production on automatic machinery. Upper tapes 22 may be inserted, by stitching wires 12 therethrough, as said wires are assembled with side strands 10 and intermediate strand 16 in the common process already described. Adhesive 28 may then be applied to tape 22 by a roller as the pad advances through the machine, wires 20 and lower tapes 24 fed into place from continuous rolls, and the tapes bonded firmly together by passage thereof between soft-surfaced pressure rollers. During the latter step of the process, the pro-stitching of Wires 12 through upper tape 22 causes said upper tape to maintain an accurate and uniform spacing between wires 12 as the wires 20 and lower tapes 24 are added.

In the form of the invention shown in FIGS. -7, the insulator pad 8 is substantially identical with that shown in FIGS. 14, corresponding parts being indicated by corresponding primed numerals, except that instead of the lower tape 24 shown in FIGS. 1-4, there is utilized a pliable sheet 30 which may be of a fabric such as burlap, or any other suitable pliable material. Sheet 30 underlies the entire area of the pad, as best shown in FIG. 5, and may extend outwardly from side cords 10; as shown to provide flaps 32 which may be utilized in attaching the pad to the spring deck. Upper tapes 22' are bonded to sheet 30 at both sides of each reinforcing wire 20', and between the cross wires 12', by a suitable adhesive 34 as indicated in FIG. 6. Additionally, although not shown, cross wires 12' could be stitched through sheet 30, particularly at positions closely adjacent side cords 10', in order to inhibit possible longitudinal sliding of wires 12' in the event the adhesive connections of said wires to sheet 30 and tapes 22' should be broken.

The function and operation of the species of the invention shown in FIGS. 57 is substantially the same as that of FIGS. 14 species, except for the special advantages flowing from the use of sheet 30. Firstly, said sheet provides insulation against contact between cross wires 12' and the wires of the spring deck units 4, thereby replacing the overall insulator sheet often used in connection with the species of the invention shown in FIGS. 1-4, as previously mentioned. Secondly, it provides still smoother and more continuous support for the padding layers overlying the pad, than could be provided by cross wires 12 alone. Thirdly, the sheet provides a means for containing and preventing the escape of fragments of the padding material, this function being particularly important if the padding is of a type which is easily shredded or fragmented.

While we have shown and described specific embodiments of our invention, it will be readily apparent that many minor changes of structure and operation could be made without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined by the scope of the appended claims.

What we claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. In an insulator pad for upholstered furniture including a series of generally parallel, spaced apart cross wires:

(a) a plurality of resilient reinforcing wires disposed in spaced apart relation and extending transversely to said cross wires, and

(b) means securing each of said reinforcing wires with respect to each of said cross wires, said securing means constituting a pair of pliable, substantially non-elastic planar members, said members overlying each other and being disposed respectively at the distal sides of said cross wires and said reinforcing wire, and means bonding said members together in the spaces between said cross wires and at both sides of said reinforcing wire, each of said reinforcing wires being of zig-zag angular configuration.

2. In an insulator pad for upholstered furniture including a series of generally parallel, spaced apart cross wires:

(a) a plurality of resilient reinforcing wires disposed in spaced apart relation and extending transversely to said cross wires, and

(b) means securing each of said reinforcing wires with respect to each of said cross wires, said securing means constituting a pair of pliable, substantially nonelastic planar members, said members overlying each other and being disposed respectively at the distal sides of said cross wires and said reinforcing wire, and means bonding said members together in the spaces between said cross wires and at both sides of said reinforcing wire, said cross wires being stitched through one of said members but not the other, whereby portions of both of said members, at each of said cross wires, are disposed at the same side of said cross wire, said reinforcing wire being disposed between the portions of said members disposed at the same side of each cross wire.

3. An insulator pad as recited in claim 1 wherein the zig-zag undulations of each of said reinforcing wires lie in a common plane, and wherein said securing means is operable to maintain the plane of said undulations in the plane established by said cross wires.

4. An insulator pad as recited in claim 1 wherein each of said reinforcing wires is of angular zig-zag configuration with the undulations thereof lying in a common plane, said plane being maintained in the plane established by said cross wires by the inclusion of said reinforcing wire between said securing members.

5. An insulator pad as recited in claim 1 wherein successive reaches of the zig-zag configuration of each of said reinforcing wires are inclined obliquely but oppositely with respect to the general direction of said cross wires.

6. An insulator pad as recited in claim 1 wherein each angle of said reinforcing wire intermediate successive reaches thereof is disposed directly adjacent one of said cross wires.

7. An insulator pad as recited in claim 1 wherein said cross wires are stitched through one of said members but 8 not the other, whereby portions of both of said members, at each of said cross wires, are disposed at the same side of said cross wire, said reinforcing wire being disposed between the portions of said members disposed at the same side of each cross Wire.

References Cited CASMIR A. NUNBERG, Primary Examiner. 

1. IN AN INSULATOR PAD FOR UPHOLSTERED FURNITURE INCLUDING A SERIES OF GENERALLY PARALLEL, SPACED APART ACROSS WIRES: (A) A PLURALITY OF RESILIENT REINFORCING WIRES DISPOSED IN SPACED APART RELATION AND EXTENDING TRANSVERSELY TO SAID CROSS WIRES, AND (B) MEANS SECURING EACH OF SAID REINFORCING WIRES WITH RESPECT TO EACH OF SAID CROSS WIRES, SAID SECURING MEANS CONSTITUTING A PAIR OF PLIABLE, SUBSTANTIALLY NON-ELASTIC PLANAR MEMBERS, SAID MEMBERS OVERLYING EACH OTHER AND BEING DISPOSED RESPECTIVELY AT THE DISTAL 